Arts Watch.

Harris Lets Energy Flow At `Danceafrica'

October 08, 1995|By Rohan B Preston. Special to the Tribune.

With tightly coordinated dialogues between movement and music showcasing his six dancers' discipline, athleticism and grace, Philadelphia choreographer Rennie Harris has achieved an almost perfect synthesis of drama and dance, even as he spotlights the continuities between African retentions and American improvisations.

On Friday night, Harris' PureMovement ensemble, the last of four troupes in this year's "DanceAfrica/Chicago" program, began his "Students of The Asphalt Jungle" suite with ritual kneeling. On one knee with bowed heads, the sextet is frozen at the beginning of a race.

Only after they are circled and prayed over, then literally touched by drums, do they rise to become figures of incredible dynamism, fusing break-dance, hip-hop, house music, jazz, and animation in a stunning display of virtuosity.

It is as if the asphalt in the suite's title were melted and turned into hot liquid. The six dancers spun, twirled, flipped, twisted and swam-all suggesting not only impending pressures but also evasion, utility and, ultimately, victory.

The other acts presented works that spoke to redemption.

Making its first Chicago appearance with this festival, the Ghana Dance Ensemble rendered traditional suites over flute-laced peppery percussion, including "Agbekor," which was remarkable for its military precision and surety of purpose, and "Bamaya," a fertility dance performed entirely by men.

The evening began with a grand parade of elders, complete with stools and parasols for a king and queen mother and their endless retinue. Indeed, all the performers in the first half of the program had two audiences, counting the royal one sitting at the rear of the stage.

With their presentation of a series of 13th Century Malian suites, Chicago's Sundance Production created a mesmerizing mix for the evening, including a "Liendeng," or birth scene, in which the company used a live baby.

One of the highlights of their program was eight feisty children dancers who put out with authority.

They were followed by Djoul'e African, whose Guinean celebration offered rich performances from the dancers as well as the drummers.

Presented for the fourth year by the Dance Center of Columbia College and hosted by the inimitable Chuck Davis, "DanceAfrica/Chicago 1995" features fewer troupes than in the past. Yet the ensembles' energy levels and deft performances filled the program (and the stage) with vivid and vibrant pageantry. As smiling patron Janis Robinson noted, "the colors are so alive."